When planning our trip along the Canning Stock Route in our Suzuki Jimny, we quickly realised something: weight matters — a lot. The Jimny has a maximum payload (GVM) of just 340 kg, and once you add two people, water, fuel, food, and gear… we’re well over. In fact, 432 kg. Oops.
So we had two choices:
Go overloaded and risk breaking stuff, or
Use a small, lightweight trailer and stay legal — and safe.
We chose the trailer. Not because we love towing (we don’t), but because staying under GVM means our suspension, shocks, and driveline aren’t being punished every kilometre. And guess what? Our trailer setup adds just 283 kg to the Jimny, comfortably under GVM. Bonus: it also means Jasper gets to bring a few creature comforts along.
A couple of notes about the numbers:
There’s plenty of buffer built in. For example, 20 L of petrol weighs around 15–16 kg, but I rounded it up to include the jerry can — probably a little on the high side.
Food works out to be less than 2 kg per person per day, and we definitely don’t have 10 kg of clothing — but better to have a little fat in the numbers than not enough.
The extra 10 kg listed for the fuel tank is because the Jimny’s tare weight already includes about 30 L of fuel.
And yes, I’m aware the Jimny unbraked limit is 350 kg, but we’ll be filling up just before we hit the trail. That means we’ll only be near that limit for the first couple of days — we get lighter every day. With an average speed of 15–35 km/h, I’m not too worried about braking distance being an issue.
We looked at what most people add to their Jimny's — big tyres, bullbar, roof rack, drawers, winch, awning, fridge, long range tank, the whole lot. It adds more weight (181 kg!) than our (empty) trailer.
So when people say “don’t tow with a Jimny” — fair! But also: maybe don’t turn your Jimny into a tank and then call it lightweight.
People keep asking me: “Where on earth did you get the idea to tow a tiny trailer behind a Jimny… on the CSR?” Fair question. It’s not exactly in the standard 4WD playbook.
So here’s the honest origin story.
When I first bought the Jimny for adventures with my son, I did what every new Jimny owner does: I went straight to YouTube, typed in “Jimny overland”, and fell head-first into a rabbit hole.
And that’s how I stumbled across this a bloke named Andrew St Pierre White. (Yes, that Andrew. The same person giving me a gentle nudge against towing a trailer now. We’ll get to that irony in a second…)
Anyway, near the end of one of his New Zealand Jimny videos, he casually mentioned using a small trailer.
My first reaction? “Pffft… no way.”
But then I paused. Here’s a guy who’s been doing “a bit” of travelling (translation: more kilometres off-road than I’ve driven in my entire life). Maybe… just maybe… the idea wasn’t totally ridiculous.
So I thought: “You know what? I’ll load up my little trailer, take it to a proper technical trail, drive it like a muppet, and watch it explode. That’ll be the end of it.”
Except… it didn’t explode. It didn’t fail. It didn’t even complain.
No matter what I reasonably tried — steep hills, side-leaning tracks, creek beds, hours of corrugations — the little trailer just followed along faithfully like a happy duckling.
And that’s how it all started. A random YouTube video. A silly idea. A test that should’ve ended with a broken trailer… but didn’t.
So yes — the very person now raising an eyebrow at my plan is the same one who planted the seed in my brain in the first place.
Life’s funny like that.
And to be clear: I’m grateful for the pushback. It forces me to think harder, plan better, and keep safety as priority one. But credit where credit’s due — the “trailer madness” didn’t come from me. I’m just following the breadcrumbs.
Let’s get this out of the way: bullbars are great — if you're regularly driving at night, in roo-heavy regions, or crashing through the bush like you're filming Mad Max. But for us, driving the Canning Stock Route in a Suzuki Jimny with a 340 kg payload limit, every single kilogram matters.
A typical steel bullbar weighs around 35–40 kg. That’s the equivalent of 2 full jerry cans or one average-size 10-year-old (hi Jasper!). So we had to ask ourselves: Do we really need it?
Here’s why we decided no:
We don’t drive at dusk, dawn, or at night. That’s when animal strikes are most likely.
We’re not smashing through dense scrub. We’re following a well-worn track (more or less).
We’d rather spend the weight on things like fuel, food, water, and Jasper’s bacon and eggs.
We accept the small risk of animal impact in exchange for staying under GVM and keeping things simple.
Could we get unlucky and hit something? Sure. But honestly, driving overloaded is a much more guaranteed way to break something — and expensive too.
So no, we’re not anti-bullbar. We’re just pro-calculated risk and pro-common sense
Disclaimer:
This is our decision based on our vehicle, load limitations, and travel style. It’s not advice. If you regularly drive at night, in high animal-strike areas, or want front-end protection for peace of mind, a bullbar might be essential for your setup.
We’re choosing to accept a small amount of risk in exchange for staying within legal and mechanical limits on an extremely remote route. Every setup is different — always do your own risk assessment before modifying or skipping safety gear.
Your trailer needs to be compact, light, and tough. Think minimalist.
We aimed to keep ours unbraked, single axle, and under 350 kg fully loaded. That’s light enough for the Jimny to tow safely without wrecking itself — or us.
Chassis
Fully welded steel chassis with reinforced suspension hangers.
Reinforced drawbar with a quality off-road coupling. (We haven’t needed one, but they do look cool.)
Suspension
Leaf springs: simple, strong, and fixable with a hammer and a bit of hope.
Shock absorbers: nice-to-have, but if your trailer’s light, not a dealbreaker. Tyre pressures are absolutely crucial!
Jockey Wheel
Heavy-duty swing-up if you must.
Or go lighter: we ditched it altogether. Every kilo counts.
Locks & Security (Optional)
Hitch lock: keeps it safe at caravan parks or motels.
Lockable cage: keeps swags safe from thieves and thorny bushes. Overgrown tracks love relocating things from the trailer to the track — or ripping them to shreds.
Tyres & Wheels
Ideally, same size as the Jimny for emergency swaps.
LT (Light Truck) tyres are non-negotiable — regular ones won’t survive corrugations or thorny bushes.
Our decision:
We stuck with standard trailer hubs and LT tyres. They’re not interchangeable with the Jimny, but upgrading would have cost AUD $1500–2000 — more than our fuel budget! To make it work, you’d need to swap hubs, wheels, tyres and studs — three times over. This way, we can roll into any outback mechanic’s shop and get help without needing a specialist “Jimny trailer wheel fairy.”
Simple, modular, secure. Nothing should bounce, rattle, or slide.
Jerry can holders or aviation rail tie-down system (our choice)
20L NATO-style jerry cans – the only ones we found that don’t leak, smell, or make you swear when opening
Marine carpet under jerry cans – to protect them from rubbing through on corrugations
Ratchet straps – never bungee cords for heavy objects.
You're thousands of kilometers from the nearest workshop, so pack like your trailer depends on it — because it does.
1x Spare wheel & tyre
Wheel bearings, hub + grease + tools
Leaf spring center bolts & U-bolts (if using leaf setup)
Spare leaf spring set (we only carry these for the CSR)
I swapped out the old 5-leaf, 750 kg spring pack for a set of 3-leaf, 300 kg springs — and now the suspension actually moves (always an improvement).
The springs I used are these: Huntsman 3-Leaf 45mm Trailer Eye Slipper Springs. I’ll be ordering another pair as spares, just in case.
The biggest handling improvement, though, came from getting the tyre pressures right.
To work it out, I used the Jimny’s front axle as a baseline: about 500 kg on the front running 23 psi → that’s roughly 0.046 psi/kg. Multiply that by the trailer’s 350 kg weight = ~16 psi for normal road use. On the picture below you can see the nice footprint even with highway pressure.
Off-road (sand, soft stuff, etc.) I just start at half highway pressures and adjust from there.
I also rerouted the electric plug to the top of the towbar so it won’t get smashed by rocks. Still not sure what Suzuki engineers were thinking putting it in such a vulnerable spot .
After more test trips, I decided to put the cage back on the trailer. It’s a little extra weight, but it makes tying things down much easier and helps deter quick snatch-and-grab thefts at servos or roadhouses. Also overgrown tracks love relocating things from the trailer to the track — or ripping them to shreds. - Note: I am still not sure if we take the cage on the CSR, while its not a lot, every KG count -
I also discovered a bonus feature: you can use the cage “doors” — and probably the sides too — as makeshift traction boards or even to bridge over a fallen tree.
Disclaimer: This almost certainly voids any design criteria of the trailer cage and only worked because the Jimny is so light. Please, please, with sugar on top, don’t try this with a 3.5-ton LandCruiser.
And surprisingly, the standard 50 mm ball coupler has held up fine. I thought I’d be fighting it on steep creek crossings and tight angles, but the towbar hits the dirt before the coupler causes any drama. As much as I’d like an excuse to “upgrade” to a fancy off-road hitch — I just can’t fault the humble ball. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!
One of the most common comments I get when people see our setup is:
“Mate, you have to replace that tow ball with a proper off-road hitch!”
And honestly? They’re right.
A proper off-road hitch is absolutely the better solution — stronger articulation and built for the exact kind of punishment the Canning Stock Route dishes out.
But… is what we have good enough for our specific setup?
Let’s look at the reality, not the theory.
We’re not towing a 1.3-ton hybrid camper with 35" tyres.
We have a very small trailer behind a very small car — a Jimny with a naturally excellent departure angle.
People love telling me: “That tow ball will fail first bump!”
I’d happily believe them… except we’ve done multiple technical tracks where it just didn’t.
We’re talking:
45° climbs and descents
creek beds where the car’s tow bar hits the ground
the trailer leaning past 45° sideways
off-camber rock steps
tight turns with full articulation
And the tow ball? Still fine. Zero binding, zero weird noises, zero drama.
So saying “it doesn’t work”… doesn’t match our lived experience.
If money was no object, I’d bolt on a off-road hitch immediately.
But here’s the honest part:
Every upgrade must be cleared by “the boss” (my wife).
“I need this because the current one is dangerous and doesn’t work”
= approved.
“I need this because it’s technically better than what already works”
= somehow ends up in the absolutely-not pile.
So for now, with the testing we’ve done and our ultra-light trailer, the current setup is considered good enough by the household CFO.
Great! If you truly believe that…
Get in touch and I’ll send you my shipping address. Bolt-on preferred — no welding required.
I’m not saying a basic tow ball is better than a true off-road hitch. I’m not even saying you should copy what we’re doing.
I am saying that:
our trailer is tiny,
our car is tiny,
our loads are tiny,
we’ve tested it hard,
and it hasn’t let us down.
That said, if the day comes when I finally convince the boss… I’ll happily update this page with: “You were all right, and I finally upgraded.”
Until then:
what we have works — and we know it works because we’ve actually used it.
Weight first, comfort second – it's easy to creep past 400 kg “just adding a few things.”
Avoid fragile or complex gear – if it can’t be fixed with duct tape, zip ties, or fencing wire, leave it behind.
We didn’t build a monster off-road trailer. We built a trailer that works for a Jimny. And funny enough, when you don’t bolt on 300 kg worth of accessories, suddenly a trailer doesn't seem so crazy anymore...
These posts are based on our personal experience preparing a lightweight trailer for the Canning Stock Route, using a Suzuki Jimny. We’re not engineers, mechanics, or professional outback adventurers — just a dad and his kid making things work (hopefully).
Every trailer, car, and trip is different. What worked for us might not work for you. Please use common sense, talk to your mechanic or trailer builder, and always check your state’s towing laws and vehicle limits.
Oh, and if you ignore all this and something breaks in the middle of the desert... don't say we didn't warn you — but we’ll totally understand.
Yes, I’m well aware that you can get a GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass) upgrade and with that you are allowed to carry a bit more. But here's the thing:
While I’m not an automotive engineer, I can’t help but ask: what does a GVM upgrade actually involve?
In most cases, it means installing stiffer springs and maybe beefier shocks—which, let’s be honest, don’t actually carry weight, they just control the motion. No chassis reinforcements, no beefed-up axles, no structural changes. Just... stiffer springs. And suddenly your Jimny is supposed to legally and safely carry a few hundred extra kilos?
Look, Suzuki has been building the Jimny for decades. If they thought it was safe (and smart) to let people haul around extra weight, they probably would have installed those heavier-duty springs at the factory and given you a neat little warranty card to go with them. Speaking of which… how’s that Suzuki warranty looking after a GVM upgrade? Thought so.
Now—before anyone gets defensive—I absolutely see the value in upgrading your suspension, especially the shocks. In fact, I’d say that’s where the real performance gains are. We’re not doing that yet purely because of budget. But we are packing a spare pair of shocks for the CSR, because let’s face it: if anything’s going to get punished out there, it’s the tyres and the suspension.
So yes, I know of GVM upgrades—but for our trip, we’re choosing a different approach: pack light, think smart, and carry (some) spares.
Disclaimer for the Mod-Lovers
Before anyone grabs their torque wrench in outrage—this post isn’t a dig at folks who love modding their 4WDs. If you enjoy upgrading, tweaking, and engineering your rig into an outback beast, more power to you (literally!). This is just our approach, based on our goals, our budget, and our belief that less can sometimes be more.
We love seeing well-built trucks and clever setups—we just don’t all need to take the same path to the same destination.